Then in March of this year, as Kerry-lee was still struggling to manage the pain caused by her accident, she was hit with another formidable life event: a breast cancer diagnosis.

“My sister was going for a mammogram at a local breast screening van and talked me into having one too. It was a total shock when the cancer result came back,” Kerry-lee said.

“The mammogram saved my life that’s why its important for me to share my story and get the message out there to all women, please get screened, even if you don’t have any symptoms, find the time, it could save your life too”

Kerry-lee has since undergone a bilateral mastectomy, where both breasts are surgically removed in order to cut out the cancer.

This is when doctors found that the mum-of-three had a very rare and aggressive type of cancer called micropapillary, which accounts for approximately 2 per cent of breast cancer cases.

Micropapillary is a very fast growing cancer with a high chance of reappearing somewhere else in the body.

“The scariest thing the oncologist said to me is that they can’t cure me if it comes back in my bones. He said I will have between three and eight years if that happens,” Kerry-lee said.

Kerry-Lee’s treatment plan involves chemotherapy and radiotherapy.

The high doses of chemotherapy, though necessary, are extremely harsh on the body’s immune system and means that she may have to endure debilitating side effects like vomiting, possible nerve damage, ongoing pain, diarrhoea and intense fatigue.

But there is an alternate treatment that Kerry-lee is also undergoing that she praises for keeping those horrible side-effects at bay.

Kerry-lee and her daughter Grace who is the youngest of three children. Picture: GoFundMeSource:Supplied

Dr Chen Qi Xin is a Chinese Herbalist with a background in Oncology who was recommended by her doctor.

He works alongside the mainstream doctors, treating patients with Chinese herbs and acupuncture to boost their immune system and reduce the harsh impact of chemotherapy.

Kerry-lee has praised Dr Chen as Sydney’s best kept secret and says he has patients visiting from far and wide due to his impeccable success rate.

“Since my diagnosis I have learnt that there are over fifteen types of breast cancer and mine was a nasty one which unfortunately had already spread to my lymph,” she said.

“So when people say they have cured someone with breast cancer naturally, that’s great but what type and stage are they talking about?

“I had too much at stake to put my faith solely in natural treatment when none of the practitioners I had spoken to had even heard off or treated my type.”

Kerry-lee said that when she met with Dr Chen she found out that he had not only treated micropapillary but that patient has since beaten her cancer diagnosis.

This gave her confidence in his ability to work with mainstream medicine to get her better, with her describing him as a “ray of hope in a black cloud of an uncertain future”.

“When I first went to see Dr Chen he explained to me that it is imperative that I have the chemotherapy to kill the fast growing tumour cells circulating in my system,” Kerry-lee said.

Dr Chen works alongside the chemotherapy minimising side effects and at the same time reactivating the patients’ own cancer killing T-Cells to kill the remaining cancer cells.

Part of the alternative medicine Kerry-lee praises for keeping the chemotherapy side effects at bay. Picture: Kerry-lee Morris.Source:Facebook

Kerry-lee started her chemotherapy and radiation just over a fortnight ago and says that since she has been seeing Dr Chen she has had minimal side effects.

“Since I started my chemo and have been on the Chinese herbs and acupuncture I haven’t vomited once, my energy levels are great and I have been out walking every day,” she said.

“I really feel like it is allowing me to carry on my life as normal while I am going through treatment.

“Obviously, I do still get tired more easily but it is such a difference and it is something I feel should be available to the wider public.”

The extra treatment costs her around $370 a week, with her health fund only allowing for a provision of $400 a year for alternative treatment. Unfortunately these kind of costs are not sustainable for a person on unpaid sick leave.

Since her diagnosis and starting chemotherapy and radiation Kerry-Lee has spent $15,000 but she is looking at $50,000 on top of that to complete her cancer treatment and to have ongoing Immune Therapy.

Her friend Debbie White has stepped in and set up a GoFundMe page with a goal of raising $60,000 to help Kerry-lee receive the best treatment possible and help ease the financial burden.

Though the Chinese medicine it is an extra expense on top of her already mounting medical costs, Kerry-lee says it has improved her quality of life dramatically and has given her piece of mind for the future.

“It has really given me hope. My diagnosis was quite depressing. My surgeon told me he gets one case a year like mine, that’s how rare it is,” she said.

“I am just trying to stack the odds in my favour and I feel that the Chinese treatment is allowing me to do that.”

Kerry-lee said she feels this supporting therapy should be more readily available to the wider public as standard immune boosting therapy not just minimal alternative add on.

“Conventional Western Medicine and Traditional Chinese Medicine should be seen as complementary rather than alternatives,” she said.

“Both types of medicine have their advantages and drawbacks, which is why they need to work hand-in-hand for optimal results.”